Harvey Whittemore is free on a personal recognizance bond until sentencing

Sentencing set for Sept. 23, 2013 at 11 a.m.

Maximum sentence is five years in prison and a $250,000 fine on each count

Harvey Whittemore lawyer said he would argue for probation--------------------------------------------WHAT’S NEXT:

The Nevada U.S. Attorney’s office will review the mistrial on Count 4 -- lying to the FBI -- and decide whether to file that charge again. Assistant U.S. Attorney Steve Myhre said his office would make that decision in the next few weeks.

Sentencing set for Sept. 23, 2013. Following sentencing, Harvey Whittemore’s lawyers will file an appeal.

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7:30 p.m. update

Harvey Whittemore, once the most powerful lobbyist in Nevada and the head of a billion-dollar development company, was convicted Wednesday of using family and employees to funnel illegal campaign contributions to U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid in 2007.

Whittemore, 59, could face a combined maximum of 15 years in prison and $750,000 in fines on the three felony charges. U.S. District Judge Larry Hicks sent sentencing for Sept. 23. Whittemore’s lawyer Dominic Gentile said he will argue for probation, adding that similar cases had resulted in non-prison punishments, and then appeal the case.

Hours after those verdicts were read, the jury proclaimed they were “hopelessly deadlocked” on the fourth charge against Whittemore — that he lied to FBI agents when they interviewed in 2012 about the conduit contributions to Reid, D-Nev. Hicks responded by declaring a mistrial on that charge. Like the other three charges, it carries a maximum sentence of five years and a $250,000 fine.

News of the verdicts lit up Twitter and sent people working and walking in the Nevada Legislative Building to their cellphones for looking for updates. For decades, Whittemore represented a list of major clients at the Nevada Legislature and was the go-to guy for political candidates looking for financial support in runs for everything from county commissions to Congress.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Steve Myhre said they were pleased with the verdicts and will hold meetings to decide whether to refile the charges related to the FBI interview.

“These laws exist to protect the election process from undue influence and provide transparency to the voting public,” Myhre said. “We will continue to vigorously investigate and prosecute those who seek to corrupt the election process by whatever means.”

Whittemore said he is reserving his response to the verdicts until the case is resolved, but said “it’s important that people to understand that my family and I have been put through quite a bit with respect to this.

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“I’m confident we will prevail.”

Annette Whittemore, his wife and the mother of their five children, who along with extended family members attended the final days of the trial, said they were fortunate to have each other’s support through a difficult time.

“Harvey has said throughout this whole thing is the one thing they can’t take away, they can’t take away your family, your friends or your faith,” she said during a press conference held in Gentile’s law firm after the verdicts.

With the felony convictions, it’s unclear whether Whittemore will be able to retain his license to practice law — he once belonged to one of the most powerful law firms in the state. Gentile said the charges against Whittemore do not automatically require removal of his license, but he said he has already started discussions on the topic and will respond if the Nevada Bar Association files a petition to remove his license.Gentile said Whittemore remains a respected businessman and loved family man.

“The family and the friends and the former employees and the witnesses in this case who testified for the government have not lost their faith and belief in the innocence of Harvey Whittemore,” Gentile said. “They expressed that from the stand when they testified. They believe that Mr. Whittemore has always conducted himself in a law-abiding and transparent manner.”

Reid, whose friendship with Whittemore goes back decades, was not called to testify at the trial, nor was he accused of any wrongdoing. He did not return a request for comment late Wednesday.

According to the prosecution, Whittemore met with Reid in 2007 and promised to raise $150,000 for his re-election bid. As the March 31, 2007 deadline approached and he had not collected the funds, Whittemore decided to use his own money to reach that goal, prosecutors said.

Since the campaign finance law set a $4,600 limit on individual contributions, prosecutors said Whittemore gave money to employees with the Wingfield Nevada Group and his family and asked them to write the checks to the Reid campaign.

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That formed the bases for the first two charges. The third charge said Whittemore caused the Reid campaign committee to file a false report with the Federal Election Commission.

Gentile said that early in the case, the prosecution offered a plea deal, but as it involved pleading guilty to a felony charge, the defense “vigorously” opposed it.

Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman, with the U.S. Justice Department’s criminal division, said the conviction demonstrates their determination to go after people “who use illegal tricks to corrupt our democratic process.”

“The cornerstones of our campaign finance laws are contribution limits and transparency, and Mr. Whittemore’s crime was designed to undermine both,” Raman said in a statement.

Gentile said those campaign contribution limits will be the basis of their appeal.

“The U.S. Supreme Court has before it right now the precise issues that were raised by us pretrial dealing with whether any limits on how much any individual can contribute to a campaign or to a person running for office are unconstitutional,” he said.

He said he believes that before the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals hears the Whittemore case, “the U.S. Supreme Court will have already decided in our favor.”The country’s highest court is hearing a case involving Shaun McCutcheon and the Republican National Committee and their challenge of the limits on individual contributions set by the Federal Election Campaign Act.

“At the end of the day, I believe we will prevail,” he said. “I feel strongly that the U.S. Supreme Court will see it our way in the McCutcheon case. That will make it very easy for the Court of Appeals Ninth Circuit to reverse this case.”

2:25 p.m. update

U.S. District Court Judge Larry Hicks has declared a mistrial on a count that developer Harvey Whittemore lied to the FBI. Hicks called the jury hopelessly deadlocked. Sentencing set for Sept. 23 for the three counts of making illegal campaign contributions.

2:10 p.m. update:

Everyone is being called back into the courtroom as the U.S. District Court jury has been deliberating a charge that Harvey Whittemore lied to the FBI. The jury found Whittemore guilty of three counts of making illegal campaign contributions.

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1 p.m. update:

Former political power broker Harvey Whittemore sat still, staring straight ahead, as the court clerk read the verdicts on the three federal felony charges: Guilty. Guilty. Guilty.

They said they were deadlocked on the fourth charge – that Whittemore lied to the FBI -- and the judge sent them back to try harder. The six-man, six-woman jury went back to the jury room at 11:47 a.m. and ordered lunch at 12:20 p.m.

They found Whittemore, 59, guilty of violating federal campaign finance laws by making excessive campaign contributions in 2007 and guilty of using his family and employees as conduits to make contributions to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev.

They also said Whittemore was guilty of causing Reid’s campaign committee to file a false report with the Federal Election Commission.

Whittemore’s family, who filled the courtroom, hugged and some cried after the verdict but he and his lawyers declined to comment. The prosecutors also said they would not comment until the last charge is decided.

Each count carries a maximum of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Sentencing will be set for a later date.

After the first three verdicts were read, U.S. District Judge Larry Hicks questioned each juror, one by one, about the last charge. He asked them if they thought they could reach a verdict on count four if they went back into the jury room and deliberated a little longer. Each juror said “no.”

Hicks then told the jury that he wants them to go back and try again. He said they have a duty as jurors to try to come to a unanimous decision, if they can. After the jury filed out, the judge asked the lawyers and prosecutors how they felt about his decision to send them back.

“My impression is it seems unlikely that the jury will be able to reach a verdict,” Hicks said, “but it’s worth the effort.”

Assistant U.S. Attorney Steve Myhre said he did not object, but Whittemore lawyer Dominic Gentile said the jury spent about four-and-a-half hours yesterday deliberating the case and another two-and-a-half hours today, so he objected to keeping them longer. Hicks denied his request to stop the deliberations.

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Hicks told the parties to stay close by and would call them when the jury reports their decision.

11:42 a.m. update:

A U.S. District Court jury has found developer Harvey Whittemore guilty on three counts of making illegal campaign contributions.

Jurors are telling U.S. District Court Judge Larry Hicks they don't think they can reach a verdict on charges Whittemore lied to the FBI. Hicks is sending the jury back to deliberate on the lying charge.

11:30 a.m. update

U.S. District Court Judge Larry Hicks has decided to announce the verdicts in the Harvey Whittemore trial where the jury has reached a decision and will allow lawyers to question the jury about the verdict on which they are deadlocked.

10:30 a.m. update:

After deliberating for an hour and 40 minutes this morning, the jury in the Harvey Whittemore trial sent out a note saying they reached verdicts on three counts but are stuck on one. They did not say which charges they’ve resolved.

U.S. District Judge Larry Hicks called the lawyers and prosecutors and read the note over the telephone in open court: “Judge Hicks, We have three counts resolved and one count we are deadlocked on. Even after a lengthy discussion we cannot resolve. How should we proceed?”

The judge asked the lawyers their position on the note, and asked them whether he should issue an “Allen charge” – and instruction to encourage them to continue deliberations.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Steve Myhre said since it’s early in the deliberation process, he supported the idea of encouraging them to continue.

Whittemore lawyer Dominic Gentile said he did not. He then told the judge that he wished to re-introduce his “Rule 29” motion since no verdict has yet been reached. A Rule 29 is a motion for acquittal. Hicks denied his motion.

Hicks took a break to decide what to do.

The six-man, six-woman jury deliberated for almost five hours yesterday after closing arguments from both sides. They started again at 8:30 a.m.

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Whittemore, a former lobbyist and political power broker, is charged with using family and employees as conduits to make donations to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid in 2007. He’s also charged with causing Reid to file a false report with the Federal Election Commission and with lying to the FBI.

He pleaded not guilty to all four charges. If convicted, he could face five years in prison and a $250,000 fine for each count.

His trial began on May 14 and concluded Tuesday with closing arguments.

Wednesday morning update

The jurors in the trial of Harvey Whittemore – charged with making illegal campaign contributions to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid in 2007 – spent almost five hours deliberating yesterday but could not reach a verdict.

The six-woman, six-man jury will return to the U.S. District Court at 8:30 a.m. to continue their work.

Whittemore, a former lobbyist and political power broker, is charged with using family and employees as conduits to make donations to Reid’s 2010 re-election bid that topped $138,000. He’s also charged with lying to the FBI.

Whittemore, 59, pleaded not guilty to all four charges. If convicted, he could face five years in prison and a $250,000 fine for each count.

His trial began on May 14 and concluded Tuesday with closing arguments. The jury filed out of the courtroom at 1:15 p.m. on Tuesday to begin deliberations.

With no verdict reached by 5 p.m., U.S. District Judge Larry Hicks sent them a note asking if they wanted to continue deliberating. They sent a note back asking if they could stay until 6 p.m., but at that point, they reported to the judge that they wanted to continue Wednesday morning.